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Definition of carillon
carillon
/ˈkær.əˌlɑːn/
car · il · lon
Plural:carillons
carillon Lexical Profile
CEFR
C1
Grade
10
Tier
3
Usage
Rare
carillon Game Scores & Validity
Scrabble US
Scrabble UK
WWF
Wordle Guess
• noun
1
A musical instrument consisting of a set of at least twenty-three cast bronze bells, usually housed in a tower and played via a keyboard or mechanical mechanism.
Example
"The intricate melody echoed across the university campus as the musician played the grand carillon in the clock tower."
2
A tune or melody played on a set of stationary bells.
Example
"We stood quietly in the town square, listening to the afternoon carillon before returning to work."
Synonyms
View all synonyms for carillonWord Origin & Etymology
From French 'carillon', an alteration of Old French 'carignon', which derived from Late Latin 'quaternio' meaning 'a set of four', referring to the four bells originally rung in a church.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Carillon. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Oct 16, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/carillon